Sometimes I feel a little like "two monkeys on a davenport in their parent's basement"-ish about my UStream, but tonight not so much. (If you don't know what movie that quote is from I don't know if you should read any further.)

At the last minute I decided to wing it and work on a hegehog (aka moleskine binding) for my new "weight weenie" traveling* watercolor set. The weight weenie reference is 2 fold (see foot note below) first it's a biking refernce and secondly it's a weight loss reference. My recent personal goal is to loose another 20 pounds by the end of the calendar year. To do this I need to add exercise to my routine. I figure that the nest way to do it is during the cool autumn days to hoof it out to the trails right down the street from work walk 10 minutes, paint 10 minutes and walk back 10 minutes… Or something like that. I need a goal, like being able to do a sky portrait while I'm out to actually give up my only free 30 minutes a day. So I make a small light weight travel watercolor set (never mind that I have 3 or 4 already…)  out of a mint tin. The whole kit fits into a small bag that is pocket sized and light.

The goal is to have it so small that my coworkers don't ask me questions when I leave the building. If It's small and light I can hide it in a pocket. That way I don't have to answer a million questions when I start my walk. I'll eat while I'm working at my desk. It's not like I can't chew and do data entry at the same time.

So while I was talking during the ustream Eveline of EverlineTimeless was wonderful enough to  to collect the links and email them to me. She's pretty awesome!

The first link leads directly to a PDF description of the hedgehog, smythe or moleskine stitch.

I buy all my thread for bookbinding at JohnNealbooks.com For a variety of reasons. Their customer service is great, shipping fast and reasonable and their prices are not bad. Any higher price is made up by their professional attitude and super fast shipping. I love these guys. I used 35/3 thread for this book. If you are interested in coptic or decorative stitching you should use 12/3. Lineco has a nice linen thread that comes in a smaller amount if you don't know how much binding  you will do.

I use blunt tapestry needle either a 16 or an 18. You can get those anywhere. Don't buy super expensive bookbinding needles. It's a waste of $$$ and the sewing needles you can get at the drug store are just as good as long as they have a nice wide eye and are sturdy.

Tomorrow evening I will list the painting for Jonathan Manning's studio on eBay. 50% of the proceeds will go to Jonathan's studio to help him put on a roof. I'll get it listed and I'll post the links then. I can't wait to see how it pans out.

*Seriously if you don't know the first movie quote and dont' know what a weight weenie is… we need to rethink this blogger/reader relationship. A weight weenie is someone who hikes,bikes,camps, etc and goes for extreme lightness in their load or ride. I used to seriously ride mountain bikes and used to make fun of the weight weenies. Seriously I don't need titanium spokes, pedals or to ride without underwear to cut a couple of ounces. I'll pedal my 18 pound frame where it needs to go. Get out my face nutbags with too much money.